A court in Malawi sentenced a gay couple to 14 years of hard labor after they were convicted on charges of gross indecency and unnatural acts; in Malawi, homosexuality is illegal. Madonna says: "I am shocked and saddened by the decision made today by the Malawian court, which sentenced two innocent men to prison. As a matter of principle, I believe in equal rights for all people, no matter what their gender, race, color, religion, or sexual orientation. Today, Malawi took a giant step backward. The world is filled with pain and suffering; therefore, we must support our basic human right to love and be loved." [Access Hollywood]

Kirsten Dunst may have to testify again when a dude is retried for allegedly stealing her handbag from her hotel suite. [NYDN]

Lost exec producer Carlton Cuse says fans will be satisfied by the finale: "We will not be cutting to black. It would not be appropriate for Lost to end with a tricky, twisty, 'It was all in the dog's brain' kind of ending." [NYDN]

The kids of Jersey Shore are "dying" to get out of Miami. A source spills: "It is beginning to get monotonous because the cast is only permitted to go to certain approved locations and how many times can you eat the same steak or dance in the same club?" [Radar Online]

Oh, look: A Firefox plug-in that will block all mentions and photos of Justin Bieber and his swishy, swishy hair. [ONTD]

Kristen Wiig is co-starring, co-producing and co-writing a film that will star a "flock of funny ladies" [she's not saying who, just yet] about the scheming and "weird sub-language" that goes on among a bunch of bridesmaids: "You all have to get to know each other: who's in charge, who knows the bride best." [USA Today]

Heidi Montag's dad is begging Heidi to come home. He's distraught that she has isolated herself from her family and says he is "waiting" for her to call. Apropos of nothing, if there is ever a biopic about Heidi, her dad should be played by Sam Elliot. Check out Bill Montag's pic at the Radar link, you'll see. [Radar Online]

Simon Cowell was on Oprah yesterday, and admitted that he has dark moods: "I get very, very down. Pretty much depression. [But] what I always say is, 'You're taking yourself too seriously, so stop it.' At the same time, you should never put a painted smile on. When you're feeling down, you're feeling down." In addition, he spoke about an incident 20 years ago when he lost his job, his car and his home in a bad business deal and had to move back in with his parents: "I made some absolutely horrific mistakes. I believed my own ego, believed my own hype, believed my own abilities, and lots of times it came crashing down. I thought I was absolutely untouchable." [Reuters]

Sienna Miller and Jude Law had a huge fight in public at a club in London. Or, as this Britloid puts it, the two were in "a blazing row" after "a game of snooker." [Daily Mail]

Chloe Sevigny would like to be on NYC's East Village community board; Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer says: "It actually is exciting that someone of her stature and notoriety would even consider serving her community as a board member." [Gatecrasher]

Kyle MacLachlan has been making wine! His new Cabernet-based Washington state vintage is called Pursued By A Bear — named after a Shakespearean stage direction. [WSJ]

Dane Cook claims the Tax Board of California made a mistake — that cost him $515,430.43. [TMZ]

"I think primarily, you've got to have somebody on that panel who actually knows what they're talking about — because everyone is talking about casting the nasty person or this person or get another Brit. If we were judging ice skating, I mean, you wouldn't have somebody on who's obnoxious. You'd have somebody who knows the difference between a 10, a 9 and an 8. I think, to a point, [the show] has to get back to that." — Simon Cowell, on what will happen to American Idol when he's gone. [NY Post]

"There were too many times where I was sitting there bored, and I thought, 'At the end of the day, the audience doesn't tune in to watch me being bored. They deserve more than that.' But I can't hide it when I'm bored I just can't fake it." — Simon Cowell. [NY Post]

"You have to create your life, and go to directors you love, and go with unexpected risk and stories - it's that or write yourself, you cannot always blame others. I've never felt the lack of good roles at my age, you know. I went to see directors who understand, who want to shoot human beings and not ideas of women." — Juliette Binoche, 46, says she has never struggled to find interesting work. [Mirror]

"I spent so many years just saying what I felt without thinking about the ramifications, without understanding that I have this opinion but not everyone might share that opinion and now they don't like me because of it. That was really awkward. I hate it when people say this, but I'm a people pleaser. I was really raised with the idea that it's important to be honest and to share your experiences, both disappointing and exhilarating. But sometimes I think the American public just wants to see my life as good fortune. They don't want to know about the day-to-day. It ruins the fantasy. It's lame to say that I'm a normal girl, but I think I am." — Katherine Heigl. [Harper's Bazaar]

"The relationship I have with my mother is rare, and I know for some people it looks like I'm a real mama's girl. I never cut the apron strings, but that's one thing I will never deny. It has saved me." — Katherine Heigl. [Harper's Bazaar]

"Sometimes when you're writing, it's more fun to describe someone who looks a little off, who acts a little strange. To me, it's more fun to play the weird lady at the party." — Kristen Wiig, who explains the origins of the Gilly character in the piece at the link. [USA Today]

"My entire life I was pro-choice - who was I to tell another woman what she could or couldn't do with her body? But when I was 18, I became a Christian and I dove into the medical books, I dove into science. What I read was astounding and I learned that at the moment of conception a new life comes into being. The complete genetic blueprint is there, the DNA is determined, the blood type is determined, the sex is determined, the unique set of fingerprints that nobody has had or ever will have is already there."— Kathy Ireland. [ONTD via Fox News]

"Women have to have their own personal choice about reproduction; ultimately women have to make these decisions on their own. All of these decisions are very different and precarious and in some cases involve questions of health, but I do think that [abortion] is an important thing for women to be able to do."— Annette Bening. [ONTD via Fox News]